NATURE AND THE NATURE RESEARCH JOURNALS PRESS RELEASE
For papers that will be published online on 25 April 2010
This press release contains:
· Summaries of newsworthy papers:
Medicine: A mouse model of OCD
Geoscience: Submarine asphalt volcanoes linked to ancient methane emissions
Geoscience: Nitrogen cuts soil carbon release
Cell Biology: Microenvironment regulates colon cancer stem cells
Geoscience: Microbes modify soil carbon emissions
Chemical Biology: Redistributing Ras
Geoscience: Vigorous ocean bottom current discovered
And finally…Genetics: Variants influence smoking behaviors
· Mention of papers to be published at the same time with the
same embargo
· Geographical listing of authors
PDFs of all the papers mentioned on this release can be found in the relevant journal’s section of http://press.nature.com. Press contacts for the Nature journals are listed at the end of this release.
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PICTURES: To obtain artwork from any of the journals, you must first obtain permission from the copyright holder (if named) or author of the research paper in question (if not).
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PLEASE CITE THE SPECIFIC NATURE JOURNAL AND WEBSITE AS THE SOURCE OF THE FOLLOWING ITEMS. IF PUBLISHING ONLINE, PLEASE CARRY A HYPERLINK TO THE APPROPRIATE JOURNAL’S WEBSITE.
[1] Medicine: A mouse model of OCD
DOI: 10.1038/nm.2125
A report in this week’s Nature Medicine reports the identification of a molecule that might be implicated in the pathology of obsessive-compulsive disorder (OCD).
OCD is a common psychiatric disorder defined by the presence of obsessive thoughts and repetitive compulsive actions, often in concert with anxiety and depressive symptoms. A brain region known as the striatum and its connections with the cerebral cortex have been implicated in OCD. However, the molecular bases of the disease remain unknown.
Shahin Rafii and his colleagues show that mice lacking a neuron-specific molecule termed Slitrk5 exhibit OCD-like behaviors—excessive self-grooming and increased anxiety. These behavioural traits can be alleviated by fluoxetine, a drug commonly prescribed to treat OCD. Moreover, mice lacking Slitrk5 show overactivation of parts of the cerebral cortex and abnormalities in the striatum. In addition to identifying a new molecule involved in OCD, the mice characterized in this study may be useful as an animal model of this psychiatric condition and in investigations for new therapies.
Author Contact:
Shahin Rafii (Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA)
Tel: +1 212 746 2070; E-mail: [email protected]
Francis Lee (Weill Cornell Medical College, New York, NY, USA)
Co-author
Tel: +1 212 746 5403; E-mail: [email protected]
[2] Geoscience: Submarine asphalt volcanoes linked to ancient methane emissions
DOI: 10.1038/ngeo848
Asphalt volcanism off the coast of southern California may have caused the high levels of methane in ocean waters recorded several thousand years ago, suggests a paper published online this week in Nature Geoscience. Unlike other submarine volcanoes, that emit lava, asphalt volcanoes release degraded petroleum, along with substantial amounts of methane.
David Valentine and colleagues discovered seven extinct submarine asphalt volcanoes offshore from Santa Barbara, California. Using deep submergence and automated underwater vehicles, they studied the geometry and composition of the mounds. Sampling revealed that the mounds were composed of asphalt, sourced from underground stores, which erupted onto the ocean floor between 44,000 and 31,000 years ago. The volumes of oil and gas emitted during the eruptions accounts for the previously unexplained elevated levels of methane and tar thought to be present in Santa Barbara’s coastal waters at that time.
Author contact:
David Valentine (University of California Santa Barbara, CA, USA)
Tel: +1 805 893 2973; E-mail: [email protected]
[3] Geoscience: Nitrogen cuts soil carbon release
DOI: 10.1038/ngeo844
Nitrogen deposition reduces the amount of carbon dioxide emitted from temperate forest soils, according to a review published online this week in Nature Geoscience.
Fossil fuel and fertilizer use has increased the amount of nitrogen in the atmosphere over the past century, leading to increased levels of nitrogen in soils.
Ivan Janssens and colleagues carried out an analysis of nitrogen addition experiments and field studies to determine the impact of nitrogen deposition on soil carbon turnover in temperate forest soils. They find that nitrogen deposition slows the breakdown of soil organic matter, and increases soil carbon storage. As a result, carbon dioxide emissions from soil are substantially reduced.
The researchers warn that the future increase in nitrogen deposition expected in the tropics could have unforeseen consequences for carbon cycling in tropical forest soils.
Author contact:
Ivan Janssens (University of Antwerp, Wilrijk, Belgium)
Tel: +32 3 265 22 55; Email: [email protected]
[4] Cell Biology: Microenvironment regulates colon cancer stem cells
DOI: 10.1038/ncb2048
The cancer microenvironment can influence cell signalling in cancer stem cells reports a study published online in Nature Cell Biology this week. This finding suggests that the interaction between the cancer stem cells and their microenvironment may be a potential target in development of therapies for colon cancer.
Whereas most cells in a tumour are thought to differentiate and lose their tumorigenic potential, a subset of tumour cells (called cancer stem cells) are endowed with tumorigenic capacity. Jan Paul Medema and colleagues find that cells surrounding the colon cancer stem cells contribute to the maintenance of high Wnt signalling activity — which is important for the regulation of stem cell self-renewal — in these tumour-promoting cells. Differentiated cancer cells, which have lost the capacity to form tumours, can also regain their tumorigenic capacity when stimulated with factors — such as hepatocyte growth factor (HGF) — secreted by the microenvironment.
An accompanying News and Views article by Hasan Korkaya and Max Wicha discusses the possibility that an important property of cancer stem cells might be their ability to create and interact with the microenvironment in a manner that promotes their self-renewal, and highlights the possible implications of these findings for treatment of colon cancer.
Author contacts:
Jan Paul Medema (University of Amsterdam, The Netherlands)
Tel: +31 20 5667777; E-mail: [email protected]
Max Wicha (University of Michigan, Ann Arbor, MI, USA)
N&V author
Tel: +1 734 936 1831; E-mail: [email protected]
[5] Geoscience: Microbes modify soil carbon emissions
DOI: 10.1038/ngeo846
The physiology of microbes living underground could determine the amount of carbon dioxide emitted from soils on a warmer Earth, according to a study published online this week in Nature Geoscience.
Soil carbon emissions have been shown to increase in response to rising temperatures, but the long-term response is uncertain.
Steven Allison and colleagues examined the impact of microbial physiology on soil carbon emissions using a microbial enzyme model. Their simulations suggest that if microbial efficiency declines in a warmer world, carbon dioxide emissions will fall back to pre-warming levels, a pattern seen in some field experiments. But if microbes manage to adapt to the warmth, for instance through increases in enzyme activity, emissions could intensify.
Author contact:
Steven Allison (University of California, Irvine, CA, USA)
Tel: +1 949 824 2341; E-mail: [email protected]
[6] Chemical Biology: Redistributing Ras
DOI: 10.1038/nchembio.362
A small molecule inhibitor reveals a new enzyme that regulates the location and activity of Ras, a signaling protein that is often mutated in cancer cells. These results, as reported this week in Nature Chemical Biology, provide important new insights into the Ras signaling pathway and suggest a possible cancer therapeutic strategy.
The cellular location of Ras is known to be regulated by reversible attachment and removal of the fatty acid, palmitic acid, to a cysteine in the protein. This dynamic control of location, in turn, regulates Ras signaling activity. Previously, the enzyme responsible for Ras depalmitoylation—the removal of palmitic acid—was not known.
By developing a potent and specific inhibitor for APT1 Herbert Waldmann, Philippe Bastiaens and colleagues were able to demonstrate that this enzyme depalmitoylates Ras in cells. Inhibiting ATP1 led to the broad redistribution of Ras and as a result reduced Ras signaling. The scientists further found that in cells expressing a constitutively-active, oncongenic Ras mutant, inhibiting APT1 caused a partial reversion from cancerous to a non-cancerous phenotype.
Author contacts:
Herbert Waldmann, (Max Planck Institute, Dortmund, Germany)
Tel: +49 231 133 2400; E-mail: [email protected]
Philippe Bastiaens, (Max Planck Institute, Dortmund, Germany)
Tel: +49 231 133 2200; E-mail: [email protected]
[7] Geoscience: Vigorous ocean bottom current discovered
DOI: 10.1038/ngeo842
Dense, cold water from the shelf seas off Antarctica flows northwards in the strongest mean current discovered at depths greater than 3,000 metres. Published online in Nature Geoscience, the observations of the vigorous flow along the Kerguelen Plateau near Antarctica reveal a significant branch of the global oceans’ deep overturning circulation.
Yasushi Fukamachi and colleagues used an array of current meters in the deep water just east of the Kerguelen Plateau for two years, to monitor the northward flow at depth. They estimate that, on average, about eight million cubic metres of water colder than 0.2o C are transported towards lower latitudes each second, roughly four times as much as previously documented in a different branch of deep Antarctic outflow. The so-called Antarctic Bottom Water forms the densest and deepest water mass involved in the global ocean circulation, which in turn is an important component of the climate system.
In an accompanying News and Views article, Alejandro Orsi says: “Vital oceanographic measurements, such as those reported by Fukamachi and co-authors from the Kerguelen Plateau, will continue to benefit climate scientists”.
Author contact:
Yasushi Fukamachi (Hokkaido University, Japan)
Tel: +81 11 706 7432; E-mail: [email protected]
Alejandro Orsi (Texas A&M University, USA)
N&V author
Tel: +1 979 845 4014; E-mail: [email protected]
8], [9] & [10] And finally…Genetics: Variants influence smoking
behaviors
DOI: 10.1038/ng.571
DOI: 10.1038/ng.573
DOI: 10.1038/ng.572
Genetic variants influence several measures of smoking behavior, report three papers published this week in Nature Genetics. The studies each performed genome-wide association studies for measures of smoking behavior reflecting smoking initiation, dependence, and cessation. The strongest associations were found for the number of cigarettes smoked per day, a measure of smoking dependence.
The three studies collectively analyzed data from over 140,000 individuals with several recorded measurements of smoking behavior. Clyde Francks and colleagues report a genome-wide meta-analysis for smoking quantity that replicates a previous association at the CHRNA3-CHRNA5-CHRNA4 locus on chromosome 15. This includes genes encoding nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunits. The two studies from Helena Furberg, Kari Stefansson and their respective colleagues also found genetic regions associated to number of cigarettes smoked per day that include candidate genes encoding additional nicotinic acetylcholine receptor subunits, CHRNB3 and CHRNA6, as well as nicotine metabolizing enzymes CYP2A6 and CYP2B6.
Author contacts:
Helena Furberg (University of North Carolina, Chapel Hill, NC, USA)
Author paper [8]
Tel: +1 919 966 1764; E-mail: [email protected]
Kari Stefansson (deCODE, Reykjavik, Iceland)
Author paper [9]
Tel: +354 570 1900; E-mail: [email protected]
Edward Farmer (deCODE, Genetics)
Media contact paper [9]
Tel: +44 7796 010107; E-mail: [email protected]
Clyde Francks (Oxford University, UK)
Author paper [10]
Tel: +44 186 528 7509; E-mail: [email protected]
Items from other Nature journals to be published online at the same time and with the same embargo:
Nature (http://www.nature.com/nature)
[11] Cis-interactions between Notch and Delta generate mutually
exclusive signalling states
DOI: 10.1038/nature08959
[12] Stepwise [FeFe]-hydrogenase H-cluster assembly revealed in the structure of HydADEFG
DOI: 10.1038/nature08993
[13] Aberrant silencing of imprinted genes on chromosome 12qF1 in mouse induced pluripotent stem cells
DOI: 10.1038/nature09017
NATURE CELL BIOLOGY (http://www.nature.com/naturecellbiology)
[14] Electron tomography reveals unbranched networks of actin filaments in lamellipodia
DOI: 10.1038/ncb2044
[15] A novel EF-hand protein, CRACR2A, is a cytosolic Ca^2+ sensor that stabilizes CRAC channels in T cells
DOI: 10.1038/ncb2045
[16] miR‑132 regulates antiviral innate immunity through suppression of the p300 transcriptional co-activator
DOI: 10.1038/ncb2054
NATURE CHEMICAL BIOLOGY
(http://www.nature.com/nchembio)
[17] A direct NMR method for the measurement of competitive kinetic isotope effects
DOI: 10.1038/nchembio.352
[18] In vitro bacterial polysaccharide biosynthesis: defining the functions of Wzy and Wzz
DOI: 10.1038/nchembio.351
NATURE CHEMISTRY
(http://www.nature.com/nchem)
[19] Lattice-strain control of the activity in dealloyed core–shell fuel cell catalysts
DOI: 10.1038/nchem.623
[20] Using first principles to predict bimetallic catalysts for the
ammonia decomposition reaction
DOI: 10.1038/nchem.626
[21] Enhancement of anhydrous proton transport by supramolecular nanochannels in comb polymers
DOI: 10.1038/nchem.629
NATURE GEOSCIENCE
(http://www.nature.com/ngeo)
[22] Abiotic nitrous oxide emission from the hypersaline Don Juan Pond in Antarctica
DOI: 10.1038/ngeo847
[23] Towards inferring earthquake patterns from geodetic observations of interseismic coupling
DOI: 10.1038/ngeo843
NATURE IMMUNOLOGY (http://www.nature.com/natureimmunology)
[24] Sustained signaling by canonical helper T cell cytokines throughout the reactive lymph node
DOI: 10.1038/ni.1866
NATURE MATERIALS
(http://www.nature.com/naturematerials)
[25] Harnessing traction-mediated manipulation of the cell/matrix interface to control stem-cell fate
DOI: 10.1038/nmat2732
Nature MEDICINE
(http://www.nature.com/naturemedicine)
[26] PU.1-mediated upregulation of CSF1R is crucial for leukemia stem cell potential induced by MOZ-TIF2
DOI: 10.1038/nm.2122
[27] Methylation determines fibroblast activation and fibrogenesis in the kidney
DOI: 10.1038/nm.2135
[28] Disruption of antigenic variation proves crucial for effective
parasite vaccine
DOI: 10.1038/nm.2141
NATURE METHODS
(http://www.nature.com/nmeth)
[29] Targeted gene deletions in C. elegans using transposon excision
DOI: 10.1038/nmeth.1454
NATURE NANOTECHNOLOGY
(http://www.nature.com/nnano)
[30] Imaging and manipulating the spin direction of individual toms
DOI: 10.1038/nnano.2010.64
[31] Direct mapping of the solid–liquid adhesion energy with subnanometre resolution
DOI: 10.1038/nnano.2010.67
[32] Iron from nanocompounds containing iron and zinc is highly bioavailable in rats without tissue accumulation
DOI: 10.1038/nnano.2010.79
NATURE NEUROSCIENCE (http://www.nature.com/natureneuroscience)
[33] Chordin-induced lineage plasticity of adult SVZ neuroblasts after demyelination
DOI: 10.1038/nn.2536
[34] Selective induction of astrocytic gliosis generates deficits in neuronal inhibition
DOI: 10.1038/nn.2535
NATURE PHYSICS
(http://www.nature.com/naturephysics)
[35] Quantum process tomography of a universal entangling gate implemented with Josephson phase qubits
DOI: 10.1038/nphys1639
[36] Turing patterns in network-organized activator–inhibitor systems
DOI: 10.1038/nphys1651
[37] Quantum entanglement in photosynthetic light-harvesting complexes
DOI: 10.1038/nphys1652
[38] Massively parallel computing on an organic molecular layer
DOI: 10.1038/nphys1636
NATURE STRUCTURAL & MOLECULAR BIOLOGY
(http://www.nature.com/natstructmolbiol)
[39] Direct observation of the myosin-Va power stroke and its reversal
DOI: 10.1038/nsmb.1820
[40] Human RNA polymerase III transcriptomes and relationships to Pol II promoter chromatin and enhancer-binding factors
DOI: 10.1038/nsmb.1801
[41] Pol II and its associated epigenetic marks are present at Pol III–transcribed noncoding RNA genes
DOI: 10.1038/nsmb.1806
[42] Genomic binding profiles of functionally distinct RNA polymerase III transcription complexes in human cells
DOI: 10.1038/nsmb.1794
The following paper will be published electronically on Nature Neuroscience’s website on 22 April at 1800 London time 1300 US Eastern time. The paper is under embargo until this time, though the rest of the above articles on this release remain under embargo until 25 April at 1800 London time/1300 US Eastern time
[43 ] Temperature-induced opening of TRPV1 ion channel is stabilized by the pore domain
DOI: 10.1038/nn.2552
*************************************************
GEOGRAPHICAL LISTING OF AUTHORS
The following list of places refers to the whereabouts of authors on the papers numbered in this release. The listing may be for an author's main affiliation, or for a place where they are working temporarily. Please see the PDF of the paper for full details.
ARGENTINA
Cordoba: 28
AUSTRALIA
Herston: 9
Hobart: 7
Sydney: 2, 10
AUSTRIA
Innsbruck: 10
Linz: 9
Vienna: 14
BELGIUM
Wilrijk: 3
CANADA:
Burnaby: 17
Ottawa: 10, 17
Toronto: 6, 10
Vancouver: 29
CHINA
Beijing: 3
Shandong: 18
Tianjin: 18
CROATIA
Split: 10
Zagreb: 8
CZECH REPUBLIC
Brno: 8
Olomouc: 8
Prague: 8
DENMARK
Copenhagen: 9, 29
Hellerup: 9
Viborg: 9
ESTONIA
Tartu: 9
FINLAND
Helsinki: 8, 9
Oulu: 9, 10
Seinajoki: 8
FRANCE
Evry: 8
Gif-sur-Yvette: 3
Lyon: 8
Paris: 8
Villejuif: 8
GERMANY
Berlin: 19, 36
Dortmund: 6
Goettingen: 27
Greifswald: 10
Hamburg: 30
Heidelberg: 4
Jena: 3
Kiel: 10, 30
Konstanz:
Leipzig: 9
Mainz: 9, 10
Munich: 9, 10, 39
Neuherberg: 9, 10
Tubingen: 27
Wurzburg:
GREECE
Athens: 8
Ioannina: 8
HUNGARY
Budapest: 8, 33
ICELAND
Reykjavik: 9
INDIA
Hyderabad: 18
IRELAND
Dublin: 8
ITALY
Cagliari: 10
Florence: 8
Milan: 8
Palermo: 4
Parma: 8
Pavia: 4, 8
Pordenone: 8
Rende: 3
Trieste: 31
Turin: 8
Viterbo: 3
JAPAN
Gunma: 26
Hirosaki: 26
Hyogo: 18
Ibaraki: 38
Kobe: 38
Kyoto: 36
Sapporo: 7
Tokyo: 13, 26
NETHERLANDS
Amsterdam: 3, 4, 8, 9
Groningen: 6
Nijmegen: 9
Rotterdam: 8, 9
NEW ZEALAND
Dunedin: 9
NORWAY
Bergen: 10
Oslo: 8
POLAND
Lodz: 8
Warsaw: 8
PORTUGAL
Oeiras: 1
ROMANIA
Bucharest: 8
RUSSIA
Moscow: 8
SINGAPORE
Singapore: 26
SLOVAKIA
Banska Bystrica: 8
SPAIN
Barcelona: 8
Huesca: 9
Logrono: 9
Terrassa: 11
Zaragoza: 9, 30
SWEDEN
Malmo: 8
SWITZERLAND
Lausanne: 10, 31
Zurich: 32
UNITED KINGDOM
Aberdeen: 8, 10
Cambridge: 8, 9, 10, 16
Dundee: 10
Edinburgh: 3, 10
Exeter: 8, 10
Glasgow: 8, 10, 41, 42
Hinxton: 9
Leeds: 9, 10
Leicester: 9, 10
London: 9, 10, 16, 39
Manchester: 10
Newcastle: 8
Oxford: 9, 10, 31
York: 3
UNITED STATES OF AMERICA
Alabama
Birmingham: 18
Huntsville: 8
California
Berkeley: 37
Davis: 2
Irvine: 5
La Jolla: 23, 43
Los Angeles: 8, 15
Menlo Park: 19
Moffett Field: 22
Oakland: 8
Pasadena: 11, 18, 23
San Diego: 43
San Francisco: 10
Santa Barbara: 2, 35
Santa Clara: 40
Santa Cruz: 9
Stanford: 8, 11, 42
Colorado
Aurora: 9
Fort Collins: 5
Connecticut
New Haven: 5, 42
Delaware
Newark: 20
District of Columbia
Washington: 33
Georgia
Athens: 22
Illinois
Argonne: 19
Carbondale: 22
Chicago: 26
Evanston: 8
Maryland
Baltimore: 8, 10, 33
Bethesda: 8, 39, 44
Massachusetts
Amherst: 21
Boston: 8, 13, 25, 26, 27, 34, 42
Cambridge: 8, 13, 25, 31
Charlestown: 13
Framingham: 8
Woods Hole: 2, 3, 22
Worcester: 42
Michigan
Ann Arbor: 8, 10
Houghton: 38
Missouri
St Louis: 9, 18
Montana
Bozeman: 12, 22
Livingston: 29
New York
Bronx: 26
Ithaca: 6
New York: 1
Saranac Lake: 24
Tarrytown: 1
Yorktown: 35
North Carolina
Chapel Hill: 8
Durham: 8
Research Triangle: 10
Winston-Salem: 8
Ohio
Athens: 30
Columbus: 18
Oregon
Corvallis: 3
Pennsylvania
Philadelphia: 10, 34
Upper Merion: 10
Rhode Island
Kingston: 2
Lincoln: 25
Tennessee
Oak Ridge: 19
Texas
Dallas: 10
Houston: 8, 10, 19
Utah
Salt Lake City: 29, 40
Virginia
Charlottesville: 8
Richmond: 8
Washington
Seattle: 8
PRESS CONTACTS…
For media inquiries relating to embargo policy for all the Nature
Research Journals:
Rachel Twinn (Nature London)
Tel: +44 20 7843 4658; E-mail: [email protected]
Neda Afsarmanesh (Nature New York)
Tel: +1 212 726 9231; E-mail: [email protected]
Ruth Francis (Head of Press, Nature, London)
Tel: +44 20 7843 4562; E-mail: [email protected]
For media inquiries relating to editorial content policy for the Nature Research Journals, please contact the journals individually:
Nature Biotechnology (New York)
Michael Francisco
Tel: +1 212 726 9288; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Cell Biology (London)
Sowmya Swaminathan
Tel: +44 20 7843 4656; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Chemical Biology (Boston)
Sarah Daniels
Tel: +1 617 475 9241, E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Chemistry (London)
Stuart Cantrill
Tel: +44 20 7014 4018; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Genetics (New York)
Myles Axton
Tel: +1 212 726 9324; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Geoscience (London)
Heike Langenberg
Tel: +44 20 7843 4042; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Immunology (New York)
Laurie Dempsey
Tel: +1 212 726 9372; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Materials (London)
Vincent Dusastre
Tel: +44 20 7843 4531; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Medicine (New York)
Juan Carlos Lopez
Tel: +1 212 726 9325; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Methods (New York)
Hugh Ash
Tel: +1 212 726 9627; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Nanotechnology (London)
Peter Rodgers
Tel: +44 20 7014 4019; Email: [email protected]
Nature Neuroscience (New York)
Kalyani Narasimhan
Tel: +1 212 726 9319; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Physics (London)
Alison Wright
Tel: +44 20 7843 4555; E-mail: [email protected]
Nature Structural & Molecular Biology (New York)
Sabbi Lall
Tel: +1 212 726 9326; E-mail: [email protected]
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